Ministry of Jal Shakti
Water Scarcity during Heatwave
The average annual water availability of any region or country is largely dependent upon hydro-meteorological and geological factors, however, water availability per person is dependent on population of a country. The per capita water availability in the country is reducing due to increase in population. Based on the study titled “Reassessment of Water Availability in India using Space Inputs, 2019” conducted by Central Water Commission, the average annual per capita water availability for year 2021 and 2031 has been assessed as 1486 cubic meter and 1367 cubic meter respectively.
The Dynamic Ground Water Resources of the country are being periodically assessed jointly by Central Ground Water Board  and State Governments. As per the 2017 assessment, out of the total 6881 assessment units  in the country, 1186 units  in 17 States/UTs have been categorized as ‘Over-exploited’ where Annual Ground Water Extraction is more than Annual Extractable Ground Water Resource. As per the 2020 assessment, out of the total 6965 assessment units  in the country, 1114 units  in 15 States/UTs have been categorized as ‘Over-exploited’. As per the latest Assessment , out of the total 7089 assessment units  in the country, 1006 units  in 15 States/UTs have been categorized as ‘Over-exploited’.
Water being a State subject, steps for augmentation, conservation and efficient management of water resources are primarily undertaken by the respective State Governments. In order to supplement the efforts of the State Governments, Central Government provides technical and financial assistance to them through various schemes and programmes.
Government of India, in partnership with State, is implementing Jal Jeevan Mission  to make provision of potable water to every rural household through tap water connection at a service level of 55 litre per capita per day , of prescribed quality , on regular and long-term basis. At the time of announcement of the Mission, only 3.23 Crore  rural households had tap water supply. Since the launch of the Mission, more than 8.27 Crore have been provided with tap water connection and as on 22.03.2023, out of 19.42 Crore rural household, around 11.51 Crore  rural households are getting tap water supply. Recently, an advisory has been issued to the all States/UTs to go through NDMA guidelines for Prevention and Management of Heat Wave and take to take preparatory/remedial action against heat-wave conditions so as to ensure uninterrupted service delivery of water supply during the summer season.
Government of India has launched Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation  which focuses on development of basic urban infrastructure especially water supply & access to tap connection to every household in 500 cities. Taking it forward, AMRUT 2.0 covers all the statutory towns of the country to ensure universal coverage of water supply & make cities ‘water secure’.
Jal Shakti Abhiyan-I  was conducted in 2019 in 1592 blocks out of 2836 blocks in 256 water stressed districts of the country and was expanded as “Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain”  in 2021 with the theme “Catch the Rain – Where it Falls When it Falls” to cover all the blocks of all districts  across the country. “Jal Shakti Abhiyan: Catch the Rain”  -2022 campaign, the third in the series of JSAs, was launched on 29.3.2022 to cover all the blocks of all districts  across the country. Now, JSA: CTR 2023 has been launched by the Hon’ble President of India on 04.03.2023 across the country. The Campaign will be implemented during 04.03.2023 to 30.11.2023.
Government of India is implementing Atal Bhujal Yojana , a Central Sector Scheme with an outlay of Rs 6000 crore in identified water stressed areas of 8220 Gram Panchayats  under 229 blocks in 80 districts of Seven States viz. Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh with an aim to arrest decline in ground water level through community led sustainable groundwater management. The scheme is being implemented from 01.04.2020 for a period of 5 years.
The Mission Amrit Sarovar was launched on National Panchayati Raj Day on 24th April, 2022 as a part of celebration of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav with an objective to conserve water for future. The Mission is aimed at developing and rejuvenating 75 water bodies in each district of the country.
The important steps taken by the Central Government for sustainable ground water management in the country including effective implementation of rain water harvesting, water conservation, etc. can be seen at http://jalshakti-dowr.gov.in/sites/default/files/Steps%20taken%20by%20the%20Central%20Govt%20for%20water_depletion_july2022.pdf
This information was given by the Minister of State for Jal Shakti, Shri Bishweswar Tudu in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.